Saturday, March 31, 2012

Unfortunately, that is really the only game I can do this month (March 31st today); it's technically April. I can't review Stars Wars Kinect, because I am in a wheelchair. THANKS ALOT MICROSOFT!!! Anyway, The Witcher 2 comes out on Xbox, but it has been reviewed on the PC enough already, so no on that one either. Devil May Cry HD, ewww, I can't do it! The rest are on PC and XBLA (including Trials). So that's it.

We all know BioWare right? Of course we (gamers) do! Did you know that their first game was called Shattered Steel for DOS and MACOS﻿ (yes MacOS) and was released 1996? If you think your a fan of BioWare then that's no news to you. We can all see that BioWare really jumped into fame with Mass Ef... wait no! They have been making very well received games from Baulder's Gate (their second game)to Jade Empire. Not to mention a little game known as the original Star Wars: the Old Republic. So yeah, sorry about that little miscalculation. I'm not as much of a fan of them as I should be, but I degrees. So, they are a very well renowned video game development company.

To the main point! The Mass Effect series is one of those few great games that defines a video game generation as a whole. Much as a book or movie series defies a generation, like the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Matrix Trilogy, a game like this does the same. Some would argue this fact more so and say it has done more. Anyway, does this latest and/or last Mass Effect game from the BioWare tell another great tail for this game generation or does it end up like the Resident Evil movies? They just wont stop!

Just a heads-up; I will not take the controversial ending into account. I have not beaten this game yet and strongly feel the ending should not criticized in any review. <-- period

Part I: A Galaxy Far-ly Close Away

Mass Effect 3 is set in the Milky Way Galaxy, where we use Mass Arrays built by the Protheans to travel to distance worlds with very advanced and relatively friendly cooperative forms of life. Mind the run-on. The graphics in this game have not improved much from the second title, but still look great. Why change them and if it looks nice it looks nice. Except sometimes while walking on uneven a rocky terrain, our Shepard (lol) seems to walk through the rocks or surfaces, but you only notice that when staring stupidly at the ground and get shot to sh** too. Not a big issue, but still there. The art style is very diverse and you can tell where many of the looks of planets and creatures are influenced from. Everything looks fresh and interesting new and different. I don't mean from the other Mass Effect games, but I mean this game compared to other completely different games.

I do say that character speaking looks a bit more realistic and it's cool to stare at turians and wonder how the hell their mouths work. One thing I have a small gripe with is how for mission objects, the game doesn't give any way points or way to set any particular mission active or not. You think with an big RPG dev like BioWare such an issue would be eradicated and is the only UI challenge with the game. One last thing that kind of grids me is the lack of epic and amazing cut scenes by Blur Studios and that's a bummer. Well, not much of an improvement, but good in this category none the less.

Part II: It's the End of the World as we know it and I feel, idk.

Okay, so bad guys are the Reapers and Cerberus are a pain in the ass and the Geth, who cares about them.The rest of everyone is just trying to survive. Reapers invade Earth and now you got to leave and get the other species to help you fight off the Reapers with some Cerberus and Geth being jerks along the way. I will go into the War Assets in the gameplay part. The story line is pretty good, but making the storyline along your choices is what makes this entire game series stand as one of the greatest of all time. Apologies for not playing the other two games, but it is very true that the choices made from ME2 do effect, to an extent, the story of your character and interactions in this game. So no time paradoxes you HAX0RS! The choices the player has to make are very difficult and question every fiber of your moral being; they also very much affect what friends and foes you will make. (note to you all: DO NOT SELL LEGION TO CERBERUS!!!) Or you could just go renegade and look like Darth Vader under the helmet. It is all up to you! That is awesome.

You just have to give BioWare a major applause for forming this story around the last game way more than any other game has done before. You can still do romances and carry those over from ME2 as well, which is neat too. Such things make you feel so much purpose in a video game. Well in real life, now that's up to you. In all, adding a pretty good story with completely unique decision making, have profound impact not just on the game, but on the one who experiences it. All you trolls can just suck it!

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Part III: World at-I mean: Galaxy at War!

Mass Effect 3 has a very smooth and fluid feel to it. It feels so good to play. The balance between RPG and TPS elements is so well done that gamers hardcore or soft, from any side of the Action RPG spectrum can pick up this game and just have a blast playing it. The squad system is great and the NPCs that fight along side and against you have a very smart AI and create a very realistic combat atmosphere. The usage of squadmate powers is almost perfect and your teams can even shot and kill (that's right) the opposing enemies too. Mass Effect 3 also allows weapons to be upgraded and attached with two different items that increase or decrease certain aspects of the weapon. A new feature added to this game is called War Assets and essentially the player needs to play side missions, main missions, scan planets, and say the correct lines to gain more and more of these. War Assets then can be used, in the end to fight off the Reapers and restore order within the galaxy.

Now in game choices really could go in gameplay and story, but as you can see, I put them in the story category.

The multiplayer is very much like Horde mode and Spec Ops Survival, but with many classes to choose and use. Multiplayer also is part of the War Asset feature that utilize a percent system. Based on playing a certain amount of time in multiplayer the percentage goes up a acts as preparing for the war. Are leveling up to 20 of any class you can promote that character to Galaxy at War statues, which is like prestiging in COD. In this game though, that character from multiplayer becomes your own war asset and increases the number you have to fight for the galaxy. Finally multiplayer that incorporates into the actually campaign of the game. Not as much as BRINK, but lets just avoid that.

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Extro: The End........?

Mass Effect 3, amazing game, but questionable ending. Is it really over? Realize this: Shepard died in the second game (not saying he will or wont in this one) and was rebuilt, so death may not even stop him. Anyway, this game is up there (so far) as one of the greatest games I have ever played. If you like Sci-Fi, Shooting, Action, and RPG video games; buy this buy this buy this BUY THIS!!!!! Still on edge with the ending? Don't spoil it for yourself! Rent it, and let the first few hours tell you if this will be the greatest game ever! Now I gotta the play the first two!

Sunday, March 4, 2012

This game did a Backside 450 Indy with the Tailgrab! Ouch, I leave that out of the review!﻿ Speeeedd Booosst! Boost right into the finish with my Supah Trickah SSX Review.

Not really.

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Intro: It is not SSSEX!

Well if you did not know, I was trying to reference the first SSX and how the announcer(s) (I don't so remember) call out the player's tricks, boosts, and falls during a race. Okay, so the first SSX came out about 12 years ago, and wow I know. Now after 4 more games, we finally get this game on our 7th gen consoles and it is about time. Now as to be expected, the game has much better graphics, longer and more in-depth gameplay, but lacks majorly in storyline. My reader will soon learn what really is important in a review for this game. Green is GO!

The video is a taste of Africa snowboarding. I said it!﻿

Part 1: What is not important

The storyline, ugh the storyline. Where to end, where to end. The campaign is called SSX World Tour and three "legends" of Snowboarding, Surfing, and Motocross (SSX) join with a team of others to conquer the 9 Deadly Descents of the world. For some reason a kid named Griff bails on the team and they lose their funding. Some how getting their fans to watch them around the world will give them enough funding for the tour they. Are. Already. On. Yeah, right. Now Griff is a rival of them... Okay so story makes no sense and totally stinks, but that is not important (as the subtitle says). Lets move to characters which are a minor importance.

There are few characters here and there from the first game and many more new ones. Many fans will pick some old favs and some new guys (or gals) from this one to "Own the Planet". After beating and recruiting each character, a little moving and sounding comic-style cutscene shows the background of that person. Those sequences aren't bad and are even a little interesting and such. The game also features three different and stereotypical helicopter pilots: one Australian and Russian guy, and a Asian gal. Each of them give some feedback like the announcers from the first game, but don't call out each move you do and they tell you of the certain terrain the track is heading into. So bad story and decent characters. One egg for effort!

Part 2: I am already cold enough!

I'm from Illinois, so February (and March) isss sssoo vvvvveryy cold around here. I'll I need is more cold and snow. Actually it was a record low for snow in a long time in this state. This game has definitely made up for that lack of snow, but certainly lack of cold. Stop me! Alright the graphics and great, the snow looks good. Well, it all looks very good graphics, snow, track design, and characters. One thing to take into interest is in the cutscenes like from the image above. All of these look like very long elaborate YouTube intros with the 3-D affect and the average person not knowing how to make it! It looks good, it changes it up compared to any newerish game I've seen around. It must have saved some money and it looks nice too.

Another interesting note to note (redundant), is the fact that for 28 'drops' or tracks, they used NASA data to create them. You can thank Mother Nature for designing those! The snow 'spraying' looks more real and the shadowing is very much improved. Most of dialog is better acted and expressed. The character's recruitment comics look like a mix of good and bad art just like Metal Gear Awesome (go watch them they are funnuh). No more urban scenery like the previous games; they look more natural and sometimes industrial. One bit of the game that won't be taken into this review is the soundtrack. It has lots of songs, none of which I like (I am a Rock/Metal fan). It seemed to have allot Dub-Step music and has one Skrillex song, but not any of Korn's new songs *sad face*. Two white frosted eggs for art.

Part 3: TRICKEY! TRICKEY!

The gameplay is the heart and soul of this game and makes it awesome! I'll tell you already: 2 golden eggs for gameplay. This game is fun and hard and everything awesome! Time to settle abit; SSX features many different drops for the World Tour that are not very hard at all to get golds in stuff and complete. Now in the Browse mode you can choose from over 150 (153) drops to play and that includes these modes. Race is race whopdeedo! Trick it is where you need to rack up as many points with tricks and failing a trick spells minus points. The hardest ones are survival mode; with each different drop of these the play must use different gear to help you survive. Play it to find out. They work great and the game's economy system is not at all explained, but very easy to use and money is earned as a reward for placing in top three of any mode. Before each drop, the game tells you the percentage of your survival. You can also do drops that require gear without using it and get some Achievements/Trophies, but good luck. Never tell me the odds!

Now into the playing of this game. Much like the first one, this is very easy for about any gamer to pick up and have many hours of fun. It's no Skyrim lengthen game, but it's over all difficulty in getting all golds in everything is gonna take some 100+ hours. Not to mention the multiplayer. It is good, but you only can play and compete for the highest everything in this mode. You can start some rivalries or just scream at each other over a stupid race some one is gonna cry over. This game is very intense no matter how many replays you do. Spend your money too, because an impossible seeming drop might be a little less impossible with a few mods and better gear purchased from the store. I didn't say it would be Goldable just not impossible to finish in 3rd place. Good luck once again! Most of all have lots of fun.

SSX is very nice complete redo of a 6 gen classic game to a 7th gen console. It has really astounding visuals, and not so good who cares attempt on a story and okay characters, and intense unforgettable gameplay. SSX is a very extreme sport game the really can 'Defy Reality' to the world and a gamer's world as well. Play the demo and see it too. Rent it then or even buy after that or before. Any lover of the first game who forgot the other 4 (like) and long time lifers of the series need this game at any time of the year for a great experience every play through again and again. SSX 2012 greatly earns 5 out of six eggs!